Pickleball for tennis players: how to make the switch

If you've played tennis, you have a head start in pickleball. You already track a ball well, you understand doubles positioning, and you know how to move your feet. Most tennis players are winning games within their first session.

But there's a catch. The same instincts that make you good at tennis will, at a certain point, start costing you points in pickleball. The players who improve fastest are the ones who recognise which habits to keep and which to leave on the tennis court.

Here's how to make the switch.

What transfers straight over

Plenty of your tennis skills will serve you well from day one:

• Hand–eye coordination. Tracking a ball and making clean contact is most of the battle.
• Footwork. Split steps, small adjustment steps and staying on the balls of your feet all matter in pickleball.
• Doubles instincts. Covering the middle, moving as a pair and communicating with your partner are just as important.
• Volleys. Firm wrists, compact punches and soft hands at the net are gold in pickleball.
• Return of serve. Reading the serve and getting a deep return back will feel natural.

What you'll need to unlearn

1. The big backswing

A pickleball court is much smaller than a tennis court — you could fit four of them inside one — and the paddle is solid. A full tennis backswing takes too long and sends balls long. Shorten your swing, especially on groundstrokes and returns. Think compact and controlled, with your follow-through doing the work.

2. Hitting hard from the back

In tennis, a big groundstroke from the baseline is often the right play. In pickleball, it mostly sets your opponents up. Because the ball is slower and the court is short, a hard, flat drive from the back is easy to block — and your opponents at the net will be waiting.

3. Charging the net after your serve

This one catches every tennis player out. Because of the two-bounce rule, the return of serve must bounce before you can hit it. If you serve and rush forward, you'll be stranded in no-man's land with the ball bouncing at your feet. Serve, stay back, let the return bounce, then work your way forward. If the two-bounce rule is new to you, read pickleball rules explained simply.

4. Topspin as a default

Heavy topspin is a tennis staple. In pickleball, the ball is a light perforated plastic ball that doesn't bite the court the same way, and the net is lower. A little topspin is useful on drives and rolls, but most of the time you'll want flatter, more controlled contact — and a lot of soft touch.

5. The overhead serve

Pickleball serves are underhand: you hit below your waist with an upward swing, or use a drop serve where the ball bounces first. There are no aces in the traditional sense — the serve just starts the point. Focus on depth and consistency, not pace.

The kitchen changes everything

The non-volley zone — the kitchen — is the 2.13m area on each side of the net. You can't volley while standing in it. That one rule means you can't camp on the net and smash everything like you would in tennis doubles.

Instead, the key battle happens at the kitchen line with the dink: a soft shot that drops into your opponents' kitchen, forcing them to let it bounce and hit up. Rallies of 20 or 30 dinks are common as each team waits for someone to pop a ball up high enough to attack.

For tennis players, dinking can feel strangely passive. It isn't. It's patience, placement and touch — and it's how points are won at every level above beginner.

Learn the third-shot drop

If there's one shot that separates tennis players who plateau from those who keep improving, it's the third-shot drop.

Here's the situation. You've served (shot one). Your opponents have returned deep and moved up to the kitchen line (shot two). Now you're stuck at the back. Your tennis brain says "drive it". But a drive at two players standing at the net usually comes straight back at your feet.

The third-shot drop is a soft, arcing shot that lands in your opponents' kitchen. It gives you time to move forward to the net, neutralising their advantage. It feels unnatural at first — you're hitting softly from the baseline — but it's worth drilling until it's automatic.

Your grip

Many tennis players default to an eastern or semi-western forehand grip. In pickleball, most players use a continental grip — the same grip you'd use for a tennis volley or serve. It lets you hit forehands, backhands and volleys without changing grip, which matters when exchanges at the net happen so quickly. Hold it relaxed; tight grips kill touch.

Footwork adjustments

• Split step as your opponent hits, just like in tennis.
• Stay low. The ball stays lower in pickleball, especially dinks. Bend your knees, not your back.
• Don't back-pedal. If you get lobbed, turn and run. Back-pedalling is how people fall.
• Get to the kitchen line. Your goal is to be at the kitchen line with your partner, side by side.

Scoring is different too

Forget love, 15, 30, 40. Pickleball games are usually played to 11, win by 2, and in traditional scoring only the serving team scores. Doubles scores are called as three numbers — serving team's score, receiving team's score, and the server number. It sounds confusing, but it clicks after a game or two.

Choosing a paddle as a tennis player

Tennis players usually have strong opinions about equipment, so here's what tends to suit them:

• A longer handle. If you hit a two-handed backhand, you'll want room for both hands. Look for a handle around 13–14cm.
• Reach. A hybrid or elongated shape gives a little more reach and leverage, which feels more familiar.
• Mid-weight. You'll be tempted by a heavy paddle for power. Resist. Mid-weight gives you stability without slowing your hands in fast exchanges.
• A 16mm core. It helps tame the urge to hit everything hard, and makes learning the drop and the dink much easier.
• A carbon face. For control and spin you can feel.

A four-week plan for tennis converts

Week 1 — Play and learn the rules. Go to social sessions and just play. Focus on the two-bounce rule, the kitchen and scoring.

Week 2 — Shorten everything. Consciously shorten your backswing on every shot. Practise keeping the ball low and deep.

Week 3 — Dinks. Spend 15 minutes before each session dinking with a partner at the kitchen line. Aim for 20-shot rallies.

Week 4 — The drop. Drill third-shot drops from the baseline, then try using them in games, even when it feels wrong.

By the end of the month, you'll be playing proper pickleball — not tennis on a small court.

A note on tennis elbow

Plenty of people come to pickleball because tennis elbow made tennis hard work. Pickleball can be gentler, but it isn't immune. A relaxed grip, a mid-weight paddle and a thicker core that absorbs more shock can all help, and an overgrip adds cushioning. If you have ongoing pain, see a physio — no paddle replaces good advice.

Keep your tennis game too

There's no rule that says you have to choose. Plenty of Australians play both, and some find pickleball's soft game even improves their tennis volleys. Curious how the sports compare? Read pickleball vs padel vs tennis.